Peru - Lima: Groups must have less than 15 members, and must at least be training in Medical or Nursing school, or have intermediate to advanced Spanish

What is an IVHQ Medical Campaign?

During the week-long campaign, your group will work together with our local team to provide basic health services to populations that may not otherwise have access to regular healthcare services.

Volunteers working on a medical volunteer campaign aid in treating and educating patients, providing basic checkups and treatment to members of the community. Volunteers also help to distribute vitamins and other medication, and deliver health education information appropriate to both children and adults. A week-long Medical Volunteer Campaign involves visiting and working with up to five communities throughout the week and days typically include 4 hours volunteer work per day.

IVHQ Groups are incredibly beneficial to these communities, as they enable both children and adults to receive basic check-ups, important vitamins and medication and to increasing their understanding of basic health topics.

If you’re interested in health, want to make high impact, and looking to volunteer with a group, then I highly recommend volunteering with the medical campaign. You will have the chance to provide health services (otherwise not received, in many cases) to a large population and will directly feel the gratitude from those you’re helping. It was one of the most rewarding experiences I’ll ever have. University of Michigan, HEAL (Health Engineered for All Lives) group to Peru - Cusco

Who is eligible?

IVHQ Medical Volunteer Campaigns are open to all volunteers with relevant training or experience in healthcare. Group members can be in early stages of training (pre-med, pre-nursing, pre-dental, pre-health, etc), or can already be in Medical/Nursing school (any year of study). Fully qualified group members are also welcome to participate, however volunteers will always be supervised by local staff regardless of their level of qualification and experience.

Volunteers are required to bring their own basic medical supplies, including a white coat, scrubs, disposable rubber (or latex) gloves, antibacterial soap or sanitizer, a stethoscope, and a blood pressure cuff. Advice on further supplies to bring can be provided by the IVHQ Groups Manager and our in-country team.

Why is an IVHQ Medical Volunteer Campaign beneficial?

The standard IVHQ Medical/Healthcare projects (listed under each of our IVHQ Program Pages) take place within smaller community clinics, healthcare centres or assisted-living facilities, and can have only 2 to 4 volunteers assisting them at any one time. Clinics and centres are often limited to providing healthcare only to those who arrive at the clinic that day, and volunteers will have a largely observational role within the clinic structure. Groups are still able to participate on these projects (for example, if volunteering for more than 1 week), however groups will be split into smaller teams; volunteering across a few different clinics and centres in the local area.

IVHQ Medical Volunteer Campaigns, on the other hand, are available for groups of volunteers working together alongside local medical staff. As the groups are closely supervised and guided by local Medical staff, your group members are able to engage in a greater range of hands-on medical work, reaching out to a much higher number of patients per day, as the Campaigns actively travel to the patients’ communities rather than relying on the patients to come to them at the clinics.

Medical Volunteer Campaigns allow us to bring basic medical care to a larger quantity of needy communities and clinics. Especially for groups who have a minimal amount of time, i.e. 1 week, medical campaigns allow IVHQ Groups to be the most hands on possible and be as immersed as possible into the local community and culture. Medical volunteer campaigns also allow the group to work as a team unit rather than be divided amongst various clinic placements IVHQ India Program Director, Delhi

What support or training is provided during the Medical Volunteer Campaign?

Volunteers are accompanied by a local medical specialist and/or a local doctor/nurse, all of whom are bilingual. While medical training is not typically provided on IVHQ programs, IVHQ Groups on the Medical Volunteer Campaign will usually receive an introduction/overview of how to take vitals. This is dependent on the experience and current level of training that group members have.

All IVHQ volunteers receive a thorough Program Orientation on the first day of the program, which covers many details about the program overall, the local area, health and safety and the volunteer work.

In each of our program locations, we also have a full team of staff who provide 24/7 assistance and support for our volunteers; both during volunteer work, and during free time. Additionally, IVHQ Groups are assigned a staff member from our local team, in addition to medical staff, to help with any questions or concerns during the program.

Does the Medical Campaign have higher program fees?

The Medical Volunteer Campaigns in Costa Rica, Guatemala and Peru - Cusco are available to groups at the same fees as listed under our IVHQ Program Fees. Our Medical Campaigns in India, Nepal and Ghana do incur an additional US$50 per person, to cover the increased supervision and logistics involved with this project.

It is important to note that for Medical Volunteer Campaigns we do require groups to have private transportation to ensure the group arrives together and on-time to each campaign location. This is at an additional cost per group member and is dependent on your group’s size and the location in which you are volunteering. For more information please contact our IVHQ Groups Manager.

Our local team can also arrange additional learning and workshops for your group, such as a Medical Lecture, Hospital Tour and/or Reflective Workshop. These are additional items which we can add to your group’s program and fee, and for more information please contact our IVHQ Groups Manager.

Can IVHQ Groups volunteer on both the Campaign and in the Clinics?

Yes, for groups volunteering for more than 1 week, we can arrange your group to take part in our standard medical project for the first week while you learn the basics of the healthcare system in the your host country, followed by the Medical Volunteer Campaign in the second week.

This provides your group with a great opportunity to experience both types of health service; learning about healthcare in the clinics, and then working as a unit and team effort in the Campaigns.

Contact our Groups Manager via the enquiry form below to learn more about volunteering abroad on a Medical Campaign.